Use of fantasy and imagination among Montessori kids

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Wi   It is a fairly common concern among Montessori parents and critics of the method that Montessori discouraged imaginative play. Willa, whom I deeply respect, rightly questions why this might be in her blog entry. If the purpose of redirecting the child to reality is arbitrary, and based only on the directress’ preferred use of the materials then it is highly inappropriate. Our motivation in teaching should never be to impose our subjective preferences upon the child for no other reason than that we prefer them. But I think Montessori’s opinions about fantasy play stem from deeper observations, whether or not all contemporary Montessorian’s articulate it well.
   The authors of Natural Structure address this same issue in their comparison of various early childhood educational methods. They encourage readers to explore the origins of their preconceptions of childhood. "The concept of play and imagination according to Froebel and Montessori is also worth looking at in depth," they believe because Froebel’s  theories have become such an integral part of contemporary educational systems. As such they may be influencing our opinions about young children whether we realize it or not. They go on to quote Dorothy Sayers, a classical educator, who describes Froebel’s goal of "breaking down of all distinctions and forms… the flowing together in the universe in one great whole." Indeed many imagination-based early education methods consider themselves to be ‘wholistic’ for this reason. Sayers explains that Montessori tends to be Catholic and latin in origin and "presents a universe with definite and abiding forms, eternally distinct, and distinct from its Creator."
   Montessori herself says this: "Adults, even thought they punish or patiently tolerate the errant and unruly actions of these disordered children, actually favor and encourage their fantasies, interpreting them as the creative tendencies of a child’s mind.  Froebel invented many of his games to encourage the development of a child’s imagination along these lines… Toys furnish a child with an environment that has no particular goal and , as a consequence, they cannot provide it with any real mental concentration but only illusions…. ‘divided’ children of this sort are regarded, particularly in school, as being highly intelligent, evne if they lack order, neatness, and discipline."
   Silvia Dubovoy, PhD has an essay online called Reality, the Most Powerful and Integral Key to the World. She elaborates about the qualities of reality and fantasy and what roles both play in the development of children. She does not forbid fantasy but challenges readers to consider the most optimal timing for introduction of fantasy – generally after the child is well grounded in reality in the second plane of development which roughly occurs between ages  6 and 12. She includes quotes from Plato suggesting we avoid stories that can create the  “the presence of falsehood in the soul concerning reality. To be deceived about the truth of things and so to be in ignorance and error and to harbor untruth in the soul is a thing no-one would consent to” (The Republic, Book II). She concludes that "He believed that the stories children hear early in their lives have a profound influence on them."
   The belief that runs through her essay is that fantasy play usually occurs in children "who are living stressed lives in constrained environments, full of traffic and pollution; traveling long distances in cars; with working parents that do not have the time to be with them; or with parents that, when they are with their children, besides overprotecting them, are busy with their own complicated life (including the latest cellular telephone or computer). For these children, it is extremely difficult to find work that can engage their attention or concentration."  Unfortunately this can be true of homeschoolers as well much as any other segment of the population. Many parents and teachers are dealing with taxing situations that demand their attention. Toys and entertainment are a tempting solution to the time crunch dilemma. She questions whether this is a good longterm option however.
    Now at this point it would likely be good to make a distinction. Montessori also believed that fantasy play was more prevalent in children who had developmental difficulties.  From my reading I get the impression that while they would redirect the child back to the reality of a situation or a material they wouldn’t and couldn’t force a child to abandon their fantasy play. That the Montessorian would percieve as a natural side effect of the normalization process.  It would come on its own. Likewise, the introduction of fantasy stories etc (again in my opinion) would fall under a different category.
   Duboyvoy makes  a clear distinction between fantasy and imagination as well, a distinction which is critical to the argument and is often blurred among adults today. Imagination is properly defined as Willa did when she says that "..investing of objects with imaginary significance is a rudimentary use of symbolism which is a wonderful human capacity". Dubovoy and other Montessorians would likely concur, though they would tend to believe that this capacity is best developed by ample reality based experiences in the first plane (ages 0-6).  This is in line with Sayer’s and other classical educators who consider the early years to be a time of concrete learning followed by the abilty to grasp more abstract thought.
   European Montessori School explains it as ‘building imagination with the real’. They assert that ‘imagination can have  only a sensorial basis’. They believe that accurate understanding of the qualities of real things is part of the process of ‘collecting from the real world the material for imagination’.
   So, lots to chew on here. We have our basic challenge to discern the origin of our opinions on the matter and whether we are in fact basing those opinions upon prevailing cultural norms and/or our personal religious beliefs (and fwiw I would consider the latter to be a justified basis for these opinions regardless of which side of the fence we would then fall upon).  Then to make the distinction between early fantasy play and authentic imagination development.  Finally to determine how all of this may impact the choices we make in our children’s playthings and pastimes. Ultimately it may be worth considering whether our schedules and use of time is contributing to or hindering our child’s grounding in reality. Hmm.  Better go milk a goat on that note!

Lapbooks, life skills, Montessori, and special needs

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I promised Dani I would upload my links today.  In looking around I was intrigued by the success stories of Montessori kids with special needs. We have two delightful little boys visiting us this week while their parents attend a funeral out of town. While visiting when they got dropped off she was sharing about the dyslexia curricula they used for an older boy years back.  It sounded remarkably like Montessori as well. Tracing letters, visual cues, etc.  Anyway, we have been busy here this week so will just jump to the links:

Do 2 Learn life skill clip art.  These can be used a lot of ways.  You can make wall charts such as these and these  or use them for lapbook lessons like Dani plans to.

The Preschool Power tapes teach by showing rather than by telling. They are offering a special price through the end of Sept for teachers of special needs children.  Don’t miss these!!!  They are awesome for all preschoolers and for their parents who want a visual presentation of Montessori lessons. Nothing like having lessons at the ready on your VCR.

I am including an article  about Montessori being used for Autistic children.  In this one Montessori Mom answers some questions about using the method for special needs.  Here is a very encouraging story written by a young lady who has Down’s Syndrome.  She presented this testimony to the entire school in a speech given during Disability Awareness Week.

and finally LOTS of lapbooking links! I am very happy to be able to share several links to free templates and fold directions. Now you really can try before you buy: 

Tamy Duby has a visually appealing new site called Lapbook Ladies

At Scrapbooking to Learn you can access fold directions for the file folders and booklets.

a few more can be found here, not many but I really like her illustrations <g>

Candle in the Window is another how-to site.  (Crossover content with Scrapbook to Learn)

Mirkwood Designs has tons of templates to download and resize to your needs.  These are designed as cards so there is a great deal of potential here for all kinds of projects. There is nothing so nice as ‘press and print’ imo!

And should you want it just that easy you can check out Hands of a Child.  They sell lapbooking kits along with topical study guides for a host of subjects. If you click on a title you can pull up a free downloadable sample for each.

If you want more more more then ck out the yahoo lapbooking group. They have oodles of shared images in the picture files for the group.

Hope that helps, Dani!   Back to school here!  : )

Long in the Tooth

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Float The vet came last week to do Taylor’s ‘float’.  His teeth had become overgrown and he wasn’t processing his feed well.  We got some pics and I am including Alannah’s narration of the big event. And let me just say if you have never seen a doped up horse it was quite a sight. Like one of those cartoons where the horse accidentally drinks the moonshine or something. Poor guy was weaving and swaying.  In all he really wasn’t uncomfortable though. Not unduly uncomfortable anyway – more just annoyed.

                                     

             Equine Dentistry

   

          On Friday morning the vet came to float Taylor’s teeth. A float is when the vet straightens a horse’s teeth. Taylor needed this because his teeth were curvy and caused him to lose a lot of his food.

The first thing the vet did was give Taylor a sedative shot. The shot made him very sleepy and wobbly.  Then he made me get a crutch and hold it under Taylor’s head to keep it up.  After that he got a halter with a flat metal that covered his teeth.  Then he cranked his mouth open. He got his tools and began to file Taylor’s teeth down.It looked like it hurt him a lot.  Then he showed us what he did. Taylor’s teeth looked much better.

The float was important because we didn’t want Taylor to starve to death. Now that he is done we can expect him to fatten up.  I didn’t realize it was so dangerous, but now I know more about it.

Easy Memory Books

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Shutterfly_portfolio I just got a flyer in the mail from Shutterfly showcasing their new memory book formats.  WOW!  these have come a long way! You can choose a size all the way up to 12 x 12 in hardcover even.  The pages come out glossy and professional looking. The new formats provide all sorts of options from page backgrounds to font choices. I was not so fond of the kiddie pages but if you look at the general, travel, portfolio, and journal sets you will be pleasantly surprised by the sophisticated, artsy designs. There are watercolor, distressed, and vintage patterns available. Under the baby book section there is a nice washed floral. Under the travel heading there is a vintage set that would look very nice with black and white heritage pics.  Under wedding there is a pale blue toile-like pattern which would look lovely as a baby girl’s scrapbook. So do look around all the sets before you settle on one.  Then, you can choose a border color for the pictures so they appear matted. Some, like the journal book format, allow for lots of text to tell your stories.  And nary a glue stick or scissors required. <g>

Shutterfly_journal Now, these aren’t cheap.  You can expect to pay around $50 for a finished, hardcover 12×12 book.  Those of us who scrapbook the oldfashioned way will be quick to point out that this is still likely a savings over a traditional book. If you have been procrastinating about jumping into memory books this is a great way to get your feet wet! The year Brendan was born – the same year my husband retired from USAF, started a new career, and we started the dairy and chicken projects – I did very little scrapping.  That Christmas I made one of these books and have been very very happy with it.

Prepared Environments for all?

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100_3211 The piano has arrived! It was a happy day for all of us.  Asher spent the better part of the day glued to it.  Truly though even the youngest players sound incredible on it. I noticed the arrival dovetails with the newest Loveliness Fair, but I didn’t have much to add this time because we just emptied the living room last week in our first phase of the re-ordering of this space.

I am still working through House Thinking and thinking it is making me do. Yesterday’s reading was about Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and how he designed the spaces to orchestrate his visitor’s experiences. Much like an artist incorporates a visual triangle or a flow for the eye in his paintings, Jefferson arranged stimulating artifacts around the room to create a script of sorts. This whole concept fascinates me. It took me til yesterday aftenoon to figure out why. Essentially this is the same principle that Maria Montessori used in the Casa for the children. I have long heard from Montessorians about preparing an environment condusive to independent learning. Unschoolers often discuss ‘seeding’ the environment with books and materials. Jefferson prepared his public spaces to bring his visitors into a reflective, contemplative state of mind, in order that their conversation and experiences might have his desired impact upon them.

Lvg This has made me look at our spaces, not just our ‘learning spaces’, less as merely physical areas and more as a spiritual and emotional challenge. Perhaps what we are dealing with is not a superficial arrangement of *stuff* but rather a profound effect upon those present. Maybe we can actually influence the types of things thought about in these spaces and the attitudes people have about spending time in them.

I have struggled of late in developing a vision for this room. My own inclinations ran up against contemporary ideas about what is comfortable and how people live. We have heard time and again that rooms should reflect lifestyles.  While that is true to an extent I think an underconsidered aspect of room design is how the room may affect the lifestyle.  Lady Lydia had a recent column that discussed respect for the home. She relates that before recent times people rarely lounged or reclined on their public room furniture, particularly when guests were present. It was an affront to respectability and general mannerliness. I believe it was Sherrie who was saying she had similar motivation in reworking her learning space. Her son candidly told her that the reason the children weren’t taking care of that room was because it didn’t appear nice enough to warrant such care. While that isn’t the answer most of us want when we just would like them to CLEAN it up it does beg the question – are we arranging rooms that are likely to produce feelings of respect and honor and pride or rooms that encourage lower responses?

Family_rm This whole train of thought has given me the nudge to run with my initial gut feelings about how our spaces should be set up.  We moved the entertainment center to the old schoolroom this week. We have yet to take down the remaining bookcases in there but that is next.  Falling down cases do not impel children to care for their books properly.  The tv seems to generate more reclining and eating – two things we didn’t want in the living room. What did we want?  A thoughtful space that might encourage lofty thoughts, peacefulness, and reflection. Appreciation of finer things – such as music and good books, both of which will fill this room in the coming weeks.

So for now, we have lots of potential….and very little else lol! But this blank canvas is inspiring!  Already there is a change in tone and all those who enter this room slow down a bit and take a deeper breath. That is a good start.  We listen to each other play beautifully in here, we read in here, and we pray in here. Next the windows will be addressed.  We need to control the light and heat coming in and onto the piano in the afternoons. We are planning on cream for a color to replace the taupe. ditto for the couch.  Eventually a wall of bookshelves will fill the one empty wall, floor to ceiling. For now it is potential.  But potential is good. We have a vision. The rest will fall into place.

As to where that tv went? Unfortunately not into the dumpster as was my vote. ; ) In an adjacent room we have created a cozy sitting area for less formal family gathering. We underfilled this space as well hoping to make it easy for the children to help maintain it. The floor is wood so if a popcorn kernel or dozens land upon it the sky will not fall. Still we chose to fill the space with family albums and souvenirs from Allen’s trips abroad and his military shadow box.  These things all define where we have been together. The colors are taken from old houses we have had. Everything was salvaged from other places which was thrifty yes, but also grounding.  It seems to be working.

I am excited to finish this book and am grateful for all that it has made me consider about the emotional attachment we have to certain things and the impact our spaces have on our children for long after they leave them. I hope that we can work more diligently to address these nonverbal messages we are sending them through our home.

How to Think about Homeschooling

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   While surfing around Fuller Farm yesterday I saw a link to what may be the most significant article I have read about homeschooling in a very long time.  Perhaps THE most. Cumberland Books has an excellent article by Rick Saenz about How to Think About Homeschooling. The author begins by having us determine the purpose for our lives.  He goes on to discuss the content and means of education. He explains that his approach is less of an approach and more of an attitude. Thought provoking!

   His basis premise is that for his family the purpose of life is to be a godly person, marry a godly spouse, raise a godly family. This goal is not for the fortunate few but within the grasp of any called to it.

   Another truism he shares is that given such a goal, not all children need to study the same thing. In fact he goes so far as to say that which particular set of knowledge and skills (and we all must be knowledgeable and skilled in something) we choose to pass on can and should have less to do with what others think is critical and everything to do with our own family’s legacy and traditions. This idea is at the same time liberating and challenging because while it means there is no one ‘off the shelf’ curriculum that will be created with just the content and balance that your family may require it does mean that your chosen path need not, and should not, look like ‘ your neighbor or cousin or fellow parishioner’. And, ‘it will ultimately be up to you to find it’. Amen to that.

   He asks us to consider why it is we are teaching a given course. He doesn’t offer a pat answer to that question and asserts that there may well be a very good reason behind our choice. He simply urges us to avoid choosing to do so simply because we feel a vague obligation. He reminds us that there are few skills which cannot be learned once the need for them becomes apparent. What cannot be learned later is character. Lapses in that department follow an individual forever and cannot be made up down the road. Therefore, its entirely possible we may choose to pursue a less palatable subject, less because it is ‘necessary’ and more because the process of learning it helps with the vital skills of learning ‘how to think abstractly; how to apply oneself to a task that is difficult and doesn’t yield immediate tangible benefits; how to submit to his mother’s authority; how to keep to a schedule’.  I cannot even say why it is so important to me. If the end result is that we all still cover geometry what was the point of taking the decision apart? I guess for me the point is living life on purpose and knowing WHY you are a doing a thing. Better yet, having your student know why. A simple ‘because’ rarely flies for a teen, nor for any of us really.

   The most significant piece of advice he shares, if you can rightly call it advice, is that if godly living is your goal there are a lotta ways to skin this cat. For some of us that may look more academic or more vocational. The content is less important than the purpose – though there must be content. He advises us to be true to ourselves, our families and our traditions.  This is a radically countercultural position to take in many places today. I am reminded of the German mother who was imprisoned yesterday, her husband compelled to flee the country, because they were guilty of believing in a parent’s right to educate their own children, a crime of "high treason" in Germany. Not many of us both articulate our purpose and maintain such an unwaivering commitment to it.

   At any rate, if you have a few moments, check the article out at Cumberland Books. You can also find some thoughtful titles on simple living and agrarian lifestyle tucked here and there at their site.

   In the funny way life has of bringing related thoughts together for me, we read a wonderful short story aloud yesterday, Leo Tolstoy’s Three Questions. It seems to me that homeschoolers and mothers in general often ask themselves variations of those same three questions – "who are the right people to listen to, whom to avoid, and what is the right thing to be doing at a given moment?"  In fact those questions are ultimately the cause of many anxious catalog readings, many pangs over scheduling, and more anquish over methodology than one could imagine. In the end Tolstoy affirms that now is the most important time, because it is the only time over which we have any power; the most important person is the one we are with; and the most important deed is to do him well.  To me the overarching theme here is that it IS in fact ok to be responsive, to address the immediate needs presented to us, and to allow tomorrow to unfold as it will. If we do our part today we can rest assured that our tomorrows will flow steadily from our diligence and intention.